Australia's 24-22 comeback victory over New Zealand unfolded before Sydney's biggest Test rugby league crowd in more than 50 years.
Captain Isaah Yeo said the atmosphere made the tournament opener an ideal start for his team.
"A game like that deserves an atmosphere like that," the Kangaroos captain said post-game.
"International rugby league feels like it is growing and that was an outstanding way to start this tournament."
Yeo played all 80 minutes with a ruptured pectoral muscle, having delayed surgery to lead Australia at the World Cup.
He made 53 tackles without a miss and ran for 141 metres against New Zealand's formidable forwards.
In the first half, he also stopped the Kiwis extending their lead by pouncing on a Reece Walsh error near Australia's tryline.
Australia had been largely outplayed and lost halfback Mitchell Moses to a calf injury, but Jack Bostock scored a hat-trick on Test debut.
Walsh's long-range try sparked the comeback; he later battled vomiting and cramps as Kevin Walters' side secured the win.
Brian Seeney of the NRL Physio account said he had never heard of a player returning to professional contact sport so soon after an injury like Yeo's.
Yeo told Penrith coach Ivan Cleary after the club's preliminary-final loss to Newcastle that he planned to play in the World Cup.
If Australia reaches the final, Yeo must defer surgery until mid-November and is almost certain to miss the start of the next NRL season alongside injured Panthers co-captain Nathan Cleary.